


Tea and Sympathy

by brooklynapple



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/M, edelgard brings everyone together, he is ferdinand von aegir, implied hildagard, oh hilda never change
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:35:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23667739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brooklynapple/pseuds/brooklynapple
Summary: Hilda finds Ferdinand stewing over his (least) favorite topic, and takes matters into her own hands.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hilda Valentine Goneril
Comments: 3
Kudos: 15
Collections: Hilda Ship Exchange 2020





	Tea and Sympathy

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Chami as part of the Hilda Ship Exchange 2020! <3

“Hi Ferdinand! I was wondering if you maybe wanted to get some tea? Every time you brew it for me, I can’t help but think it’s the most delicious tea I’ve ever had!”

It’s a bright, sunny, glorious day at Garreg Mach - birds are singing, a light breeze is rustling the leaves in the trees, and Ferdinand is pacing and muttering to himself in front of the gazebo as Hilda spies him from around the corner.

“Perhaps if I attempted it in this manner instead then the result would be clearly superior to- oh hello Hilda. My apologies for having to decline a noble lady’s request for tea, but I am currently occupied with a most vexing and urgent matter. Can we plan to have tea another day?”

Hilda pouts for a moment just in case it might change his mind, but gives up when she sees that he’s clearly so frustrated and distracted that her pout barely registered. “Aww Ferdie, what’s the matter? Maybe I can help!”

Ferdinand chuckles. “Hilda, offering to help! That is certainly something new. Let me guess, you want to ‘help’ take my mind off the problem by having me do some chores for you?”

“Hey, that’s not what I-okay, actually that does sound like something I’d do. But no, now that you’ve gone and said it I know it won’t work. So instead I’ll ask if you want to sit down and tell me what’s wrong? Sometimes talking helps!” She arranges herself delicately in one of the garden chairs next to a small table and beckons to Ferdinand, who sighs in defeat and pulls up a chair of his own.

“I suppose it won’t hurt to tell someone about it. The problem, as always, is Edelgard. Never have I met someone so frustrating, and yet so driven and accomplished! I have always considered myself to be superior to her, but she has surpassed me in nearly every area of importance to a member of the nobility! She has bested me in combat, her battle strategies and tactics are more sound, her leadership has inspired more of the Adrestian people-”

“Ferdinand, I-” Hilda begins sympathetically, but Ferdinand keeps going, giving no sign that he’s heard her. He stands up and begins pacing around the garden.

“And even in smaller matters she refuses to acknowledge that I am her better! She will not admit to my superior equestrian skills, or my greater knowledge of noble etiquette, or even my superior taste and ability with the art of tea! I am Ferdinand von Aegir, of the noble von Aegir family! Our house and lineage is every bit as ancient and venerated as the von Hresvelgs, yet all anyone ever wants to talk about is Edelgard!” 

He throws his hands in the air and rolls his eyes in frustration.

Hilda looks at him calmly from her seat at the garden table. “Are you done yet?”

Ferdinand looks at her in shock. “Hilda, such rude conduct is not very becoming of a noble maiden. I thought you wanted to help!”

Hilda levels her gaze at him with a slight smirk. “Ferdinand, trust me. This is me helping. Get out of your own Edelgard-obsessed head for a second and listen, okay?”

Ferdinand takes a deep breath, clearly about to launch into another diatribe. Hilda narrows her eyes at him. He thinks twice, closes his mouth, and nods at her. She beams back at him.

“Thank you. Now then, it’s true that Edegard is beautiful, and charismatic, and accomplished. She’s a brilliant leader on the battlefield and an absolute terror with that axe of hers. I would know. She also looks great in those red tights.” 

“Hilda, I don’t see how this is helping-”

“BUT,” Hilda raises her voice for the first time to cut him off. “She’s also bossy, stuck up, totally inflexible, weirdly obsessed with hating the church, has no sense of humor, and couldn’t relax or have a good time if her life depended on it! She wouldn’t recognize fun if it swooped down on a wyvern in a skimpy dancer’s outfit and offered her a bottle of wine and some cake. Which sounds amazing and now I want that.” 

Ferdinand’s brow furrows as he tries to process everything that just happened in Hilda’s train of thought. “Setting aside that last part about the wyvern and the...dancer, I will concede that you make some good points about Edelgard’s shortcomings. Points, I might add, that I have been trying to make for some time! There are areas where Edelgard falls short and where I excel, but no one seems to recognize or value them! I fear I will have to live out the rest of my days in her shadow, and will be unable to bring honor to the Empire or to House Aegir!” 

He sits back down at the table and rests his head in his hands. Hilda sighs, stands up, and walks over to him.

“Ferdinand,” she says gently, “plenty of us have noticed all the ways that you’re amazing. You strive to be a paragon of nobility, you’re kind to others and always seeking to help, you’re brave and valiant on the battlefield, and if I have to listen to Lorenz rave one more time about your exquisite taste in tea, I might throw a teacup at him. You’re very good at a lot of things, and even though I don’t think your fixation on her is healthy, yes, you’re better at many things than Edelgard!”

Ferdinand looks up at her sadly. “Thank you for your kind words, but I’m certain you’re only saying them to be polite and try and console me. That is, of course, the proper thing for a noble maiden like yourself to do. If I were to challenge you, could you actually name a single thing that you believe I do better than Edelgard?”

“Goddess, you’re an idiot sometimes.” Hilda rolls her eyes at him and smiles fondly. “Yes, I could name at least a dozen things that you do better than Edelgard, starting with this.”

She leans down and captures his lips in a sudden, passionate kiss.

It is not a quick kiss, or a chaste kiss. She cups his face with her hands and gently nibbles on his bottom lip, leaving him breathless. She smells like expensive floral perfume and tastes like the rose petal tea he knows she likes, having been tricked countless times into brewing it for her. Once he gets over the initial shock, he gives in and starts kissing her back, slipping an arm around her waist to pull her closer.

Then he remembers where they are, and what propriety dictates for a noble gentleman like himself alone with a delicate maiden. He breaks off the kiss and pulls away, stammering an apology while trying to catch his breath. Hilda just laughs.

“Ferdinand, it’s okay. I’m the one who kissed you, remember? And I was right, you *are* better at it than Edelgard. But if you want to go somewhere more private, my offer to get tea together still stands! As long as you’re the one who brews it - you’ve always been much better at that than I am.”

She winks at him and grabs his hand, pulling him out of the chair and towards the garden gate. Ferdinand follows along after her in a daze, a small smile playing across his lips. 

As they’re about to pass through the gate and exit the garden, he stops suddenly, realization dawning.

“Wait a moment, Hilda. Exactly how do you know that I’m better at kissing than Edelgard?”

Hilda grins back at him. “Oh, there are some secrets a lady should never tell. Now come on, I picked up some of that Southern fruit blend you like so much!” 

She skips around the corner, leaving him standing in astonishment for a few moments before giving in to the inevitable and joining Hilda for tea, exactly as she’d wanted in the first place.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [quorniya](https://twitter.com/quorniya) on Twitter!


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